When Matinyanya (not
his real name), on a fateful January 2004 night, while traveling to his
home stumbled on the four suspects murdering a local woman, his life would
never be the same again. Not that he would have a splendid life, but this was
the beginning of his horror life experiences.
The suspects had taken the now
suspected deceased Molly (not her real name) to a nearby bush
during a strong argument in a bid not to attract attention from those whom she
stayed with. While they avoided her homestead, in the bush, Matinyanya was also
passing with his donkey from a faraway grinding meal when he heard a female
voice crying and pleading to be forgiven at the same time mentioning the names
of the suspects.
Witness
to murder
With the desire to know what
was taking place, Matinyanya left his donkey and tip-toed to where the noise
was emanating from taking advantage of the cover of darkness. There, he saw the
suspects with whom he stayed in Village Donhai, Chief Chireya, Gokwe.
The girl was crying and
pleading with the suspects to set her free and the accused persons were
assaulting her. Matinyanya later heard the groaning sounds and suddenly there
was silence. He then knew that the girl could have either died or fallen
unconscious.
Gripped with fear,
Matinyanya stepped backward to escape from the scene but a twig was
to sell him out. He missed his footing and stepped on a twig and the pop sound which
emanated from its shattering alerted the suspects.
Having known the violent nature
of these suspects, Matinyanya knew that his life was in danger and needed to
save it that night. He took to his heels when he heard one of the suspects instructing
others to run and catch him but his paces carried him to safety.
Though Matinyanya somehow
managed to escape, the suspects had discovered his identity.
The following morning in the
early hours of the day, the four suspects were at Matinyanya’s doorstep. They
grabbed him and pulled him out of the house, tripped him to the ground and one
of the suspects was about to strike him with an axe on the neck. Matinyanya
pleaded with the suspects not to kill him. The suspects warned Matinyanya never
to mention what he had seen that night.
The suspects ordered him to leave
the village to an unknown destination immediately if not he risked being killed.
With no time, Matinyanya relocated to Hurungwe District, and for some time he
thought would rest from the suspects’ torture.
His horrors were not over
yet as the daring suspects followed Matinyanya to his new location in Hurungwe
and burnt down his homestead before instructing him again to move further away.
Like a sheep being led to a slaughter, Matinyanya moved further away in
Hurungwe. But, as he looked for a place to stay in further in Hurungwe, he had
to furnish the Village Head of his ordeal to get another place to stay.
Information flowed to Sergeant
Wisdom Maenzanise of Criminal Investigations Department (CID) Nembudziya while
in one of their patrols and the seven-year murder was unearthed.
This is how the murder
occurred:
Molly who was aged 28 years
then in 2004 was one such beautiful lady, yes very beautiful, such that she was
an apple of every man’s eye but it seems her beauty had with it one weakness –
she could not say no to a love proposal.
Because of that weakness,
all the four suspects were in love with Molly and on that fateful day they all
met coincidentally at Molly’s residence each intending to have quality time
with her. They had arrived one after the other at around 1900hrs and discovered
their common purpose at that venue.
An argument ensued between
the suspects and Molly and one of the suspects suggested that they solve the
matter at a nearby bush since she was staying at her parent’s homestead and
that is where it is suspected that she was stabbed by a huge knife and died at
the spot by the suspects and they allegedly buried her body in the banks of
Mbumbusi River.
Days multiplied into weeks,
weeks mounted to months until they became years but Molly could not be found.
Spiritual and traditional consultations were made but there were no leads. Even
the police had their investigations exhausted.
In 2007, a skirt, which
Molly was said to be wearing on the day of her disappearance, was discovered
along the banks of Mbumbusi River, which is about 200-300m away from her
homestead under Donhai Village, Headman Nembudziya, Chief Chreya, Gokwe. The
skirt, it is said had some dried bloodstains on it but further inquiries did
not yield anything until detective Sergeant Wisdom Maenzanise of CID Nembudziya
stumbled upon some information as regards the murder several years after its
commission.
The
stumbling block
Though the skirt which the
accused was wearing on the day in question was recovered after three years and
is in possession of the police, it is Molly’s remains that are still to be
unearthed. Several attempts have been made to no avail but there is hope –
indications will yield the desired results.
All the suspects to the
murder have since been arrested from different parts of the country with the
help of other police stations and are awaiting trial for the murder.
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